Posts Tagged Aston villa

The thing about playing at home is that there is a massive expectation for us to get a really good result, especially as the opposition has definitely performed under-par so far this season. The reverse fixture saw Ozil and Welbeck combining to destroy Villa. Welbeck’s movement provided the perfect foil for Ozil’s probing through balls and dribbles.

With that in mind, it’s a damn shame that this Sunday comes a bit too early for the returning Welbeck, so it will be Giroud up top. Alexis faces a late fitness test and given the circumstances, I would prefer to see him benched, or rested complelely, rather than being risked unnecessarily, despite how much he might be annoyed with the decision of the manager. I always say it should be up to the player, they know if it hurts or not and whether they can compete, but we always know that if he played and injured himself further, the criticism of the manager would be horiffic.

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90 minutes can mean a hell of a lot in football. You can win Championships, get relegated or change the fortunes of your team instantly. You can change friends to enemies and back again. You can be a king, a pauper, a hero or a fool.

The game against Villa promised much. A Villa side with recent positive results vs an Arsenal side that crashed out of a Cup and got battered by a very efficient German team. Paul Lambert’s side has had mixed fortunes this season, struggling to find a new identity based on youthful talent like Weimann, Lowton and Fabian Delph. Villa are flirting with relegation and we needed to put this week to bed with a win.↓ Read the rest of this entry…

Off we pop once again to Birmingham, the land of the Villains, the home of the loveable Brummie”.

Our teams fortunes are polar opposites at the moment, our form appears to be in the ascendency and Villa – despite spirited performances against both Manchester clubs are floundering at the bottom of the league. An uncomfortable position for the proud Villa fans and a nightmare for Paul Lambert.

I don’t think it is any kind of coincidence that our team looks miles better with Sczcesny in goal. He’s arrogant, confident and mentally strong – a perfect mindset for a top-class ‘keeper. It is obvious to see that our centre-backs look more comfortable with him behind. He’s not quite performing like a top-class ‘keeper, but he looks like one and he sounds like one and that is half the game of a top ‘keeper.

In terms of player availability, Gibbs is ready to return although I cannot see a reason for Arsene to change the defence after a good clean sheet against Montpellier a place on the bench would suit. Gervinho is back from injury and might make the starting lineup on the right wing. I’d prefer him to be an impact from the bench and just start the team from Wednesday.

I feel positive about the game, we are more than capable of playing to the level of ManYoo and Citeh and we need to show it against Villa. Now is the time to kick on, to take our confidence that we’ve garnered recently and fight for the three points tomorrow. Villa are desperate for a win, so the game will have sparks. Will be a good game for the neutral I suggest.